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Minneapolis cop found guilty in shooting death of unarmed Australian white woman

Hellczar said:
But i dont think all northeast africans think like that tho. Thats another topic
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They definitely dont. I've interacted with Ethiopians & Eritreans, they both said the same things about Somalias. Said they think they're weird and how they dont think of themselves as black & look down on people of color.
 
I hope his nigga ass didn’t think he was getting off
 
https://www.krqe.com/news/national/...is-officers-conviction-no-surprise/1968797668

Conviction for Minneapolis cop prompts questions about race

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - It's believed to be the first time a Minnesota police officer has been convicted of murder for an on-duty shooting.

With no video of Mohamed Noor shooting Justine Rusczyk Damond and conflicting testimony about the moments leading up to her death, some activists and community leaders have said race was a factor in this case from the start. The victim was white; the officer is black.

From the moment Minneapolis' top prosecutor charged Noor, he's been fighting the perception that race played a role in his decision. He's rejected that, but some say bias can be an underlying issue, even for those who believe they are acting in good faith.

"We can't deny that there is implicit racial bias in our society at large," said Mark Osler, a law professor at the University of St. Thomas School of Law in St. Paul, Minnesota. "Sometimes that enters into the decisions that prosecutors make. Sometimes that's going to enter into the decision that jurors make. The hard part is trying to figure out when that is true."

Noor, 33, was convicted Tuesday of third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter in the July 2017 death of Damond, a 40-year-old dual citizen of the U.S. and Australia who was unarmed when she approached Noor's squad car after calling 911 to report a possible sexual assault in the alley behind her home. He was acquitted of second-degree intentional murder but still faces the prospect of years in prison.

Noor testified that he and his partner heard a loud bang on their squad car that startled them, and that he fired "to stop the threat" after he saw his partner's terrified reaction and a woman appear at his partner's window raising her arm. His partner testified that he hadn't yet assessed whether there was a threat himself. Prosecutors noted that Noor hadn't even determined whether Damond had a weapon before firing.

When Noor testified, he spoke of his early years in Somalia and time in a refugee camp before immigrating to the U.S. He also spoke of not being accepted when he first came to Minnesota. At times, prosecutors referred to Damond as a blond woman in a pink T-shirt, something that Osler said called attention to her race.

Minnesota's welcoming refugee programs have made the state a magnet for Somalis fleeing civil war, including families like Noor's, and Minnesota is home to the nation's largest population of Somali immigrants. Noor's hiring in 2015 was celebrated by Minneapolis leaders eager to diversify the police force in a city that is 64% white.

Rep. Ilhan Omar - a Somali American who is also from Minneapolis - tweeted Wednesday that Noor's guilty verdict was "an important step towards justice and a victory for all who oppose police brutality."

"It cannot be lost, however, that it comes in the wake of acquittals for officers who took the lives of people of color, both in Minnesota and nationwide," Omar added. "We must have the same level of accountability and justice in all officer-involved killings and address violence-based training for police officers."

The Minnesota-based Somali American Police Association issued a statement saying it believes institutional prejudice "heavily influenced" Noor's conviction and that Freeman had "other motives" when he charged Noor.

"Unfortunately it's a system that seems to work for certain people and not for everybody. And it's something we need to live with," said Waheid Siraach, a spokesman for the association.

Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman rejected the idea that race played a role.

"We look at each case based on the facts and the evidence and the law that's in front of us. And I will stand by what we have done," he told reporters immediately after Tuesday's verdict.

When asked how Noor's case was different from fatal police shootings in which Freeman did not file charges, he said: "The evidence showed that the officer acted unreasonably."

Police officers in the U.S. are rarely charged in on-duty shootings, much less convicted. A database published by the Washington Post shows that since the start of 2015, U.S. police officers have shot and killed between 900 to 1,000 people each year.

Since 2005, only 101 nonfederal officers have been charged with murder or manslaughter in an on-duty shooting, according to data compiled by Philip Stinson, a criminologist at Bowling Green State University. Some of those prosecutions are pending, but to date, only 36 officers have been convicted - often for lesser offenses.

In Minnesota, only one other officer has been charged in a fatal shooting in recent history. Jeronimo Yanez, a suburban Latino officer, was acquitted of manslaughter in the 2016 death of black motorist Philando Castile.

Jurors in Noor's case were questioned about their views toward Somalis before being selected. Half of the 12 jurors were people of color, including immigrants. One juror who spoke to KARE-TV on the condition that his name not be published said he respects the Somali community and Noor seemed like a good guy and a good police officer.

"But we determined he committed a crime. And in the end, no one is above the law," the juror said, adding: "It was two seconds time, he made a bad mistake, and even if you have a split-second decision, you're still responsible for the decisions you make."

Noor, who was fired from the police force after being charged, is scheduled to be sentenced June 7. His attorneys have not commented on the verdict and have not said whether they will appeal.
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http://www.startribune.com/day-after-verdict-frey-says-trust-in-police-needs-rebuilding/509318462/

On Wednesday night, about 40 activists from several social justice organizations gathered outside the Hennepin County Government Center, holding signs with the names of people killed by Minneapolis police and calling on Freeman to reopen those cases. A few called on Freeman to resign.

Leslie Redmond, of the Minneapolis NAACP, questioned whether the Noor case would have had the same outcome if the victim had been black.

“We looked at this as a tragedy because a white woman was killed,” she said. “Yet when black men and women have been killed in Minnesota, we vilify them.”

Monique Cullars Doty, the aunt of Marcus Golden, who was fatally shot by St. Paul police in 2015, noted the differences between how Damond’s case was handled and how she said her family was treated. “I would encourage Australia to keep putting pressure on [the police],” she said.
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Revolver Ocelot said:
Cause you did.

You said the Somali guy doesn't see himself as black/us. As in African-American. He's not, he's Somali.

David Ortiz LOOKS black, but he's not. He's Dominican.
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tenor.gif
 
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-new...-million-settlement-minneapolis-over-n1001716

Justine Damond's family agrees to $20 million settlement with Minneapolis over police shooting death
May 3, 2019, 3:09 PM EDT

By David K. Li

The city of Minneapolis agreed to a $20 million settlement with the family of a woman shot dead by a police officer who was convicted of murder, lawmakers announced on Friday.

The settlement came just three days after jurors convicted the former officer, Mohamed Noor, of third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter in the July 15, 2017, slaying of Justine Ruszczyk Damond, a dual citizen of the United States and Australia.

Damond, 40, called 911 believing she had heard a sexual assault or rape in an alley next to her house. But when Noor and partner Matthew Harrity drove up to Damond's home, they mistook her as a threat and Noor opened fire on her. There was no evidence found of a sexual assault.

The family filed a $50 million lawsuit against the city, an action that was put on hold pending the result of the criminal trial. Settlement talks began just after the verdict was reached, City Council President Lisa Bender said.

“We know that no amount of money can heal the pain that the Ruszczyk family or any family that has lost a loved one in this way," Bender told reporters. “It is our continued commitment to work together, with our community, to demand and support change to policing."

The family has pledged $2 million to a local charity focused on gun violence in Minneapolis. The city council voted unanimously to approve the settlement on Friday.

"This is not a victory for anyone, but rather a way for our city to move forward," Mayor Jacob Frey said. "And I do believe that we will move forward together, united in the shared believe that such a tragedy should never occur in our city."

Noor testified in his own defense, saying he believed his partner — in the squad car's driver's seat — was about to be shot by the woman approaching their vehicle.

The woman was Damond, and she was unarmed.

"I fired one shot," Noor told jurors, later adding: "My intent was to stop the threat and save my partner's life."

Noor, 33, faces up to 15 years in prison when he's sentenced on June 7. He was taken into custody moments after the verdict was read.

“We are here today because Justine is not. We’re here because her life was taken too soon,” City Councilwoman Linea Palmisano said Friday.
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White Privilege works even in death.. SMDH...
 
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http://www.startribune.com/minneapo...hooting-of-justine-ruszczyk-damond/509438812/

Minneapolis agrees to pay $20 million in death of Justine Ruszczyk Damond

Damond payout is quadruple previous police-related cases.

The city of Minneapolis will pay the family of Justine Ruszczyk Damond a record $20 million to settle a lawsuit over her July 15, 2017, shooting death by a Minneapolis police officer.

Mayor Jacob Frey announced the agreement solemnly at a news conference Friday, flanked by City Council members, the city attorney and the police chief. The deal stipulates that the family will donate $2 million of its settlement to the Minneapolis Foundation’s Fund for Safe Communities, a program set up to fight gun violence in the city, Frey said.

“This is not a victory for anyone, but rather a way for our city to move forward,” said Frey. “And I do believe we will move forward together.”

The settlement will drain the city’s self-insurance fund, which the city previously projected to have $27.1 million by the end of the year. Over the next few months, the city will develop a plan to replenish its reserves, said Minneapolis Chief Financial Officer Mark Ruff.

The payout is more than quadruple the previous record for a police-related settlement in Minnesota. It dwarfs the compensation awarded to families of those who have become household names in the national movement for police accountability: Michael Brown, shot dead by an officer in Ferguson, Missouri; Tamir Rice, a 12-year-old with a toy gun who was killed by a Cleveland officer; and Philando Castile, whose dying moments were broadcast on Facebook after he was shot during a traffic stop in Falcon Heights in 2016.

Police accountability activists were quick to cite this fact as evidence of a racial double standard in the justice system, suggesting the outcome would have been different if the officer was not a black man and the victim not a young white woman.

“Race played a factor of every aspect of this trial all the way down to the settlement,” said John Thompson, an activist and friend of Castile. “That’s how everybody I’ve talked to feels.”

Asked if the racial or gender dynamic played a role in the decision, Frey said, “Every claim and every case brings forward a different set of circumstances.”

Bob Bennett, attorney for the Ruszczyk family, said Damond’s father would only agree to settle the case for a “transformational” settlement.

“This is an unmistakable message to change the Minneapolis Police Department in ways that will help all of its communities,” Bennett said.

Bennett, who has represented many of the most costly settlements in police-related lawsuits, said he did not believe that race played a factor in the outcome.

The Ruszczyk family filed their lawsuit in July 2018, asking for $50 million in compensation for the violation of Damond’s constitutional rights. The suit claimed officer Mohamed Noor and his partner conspired to cover up evidence by not turning on their body-worn cameras and later hiding behind a “blue wall of silence.” Noor was fired from the force and on Tuesday was convicted of third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter by a Hennepin County jury.

The next morning, city officials began two days of mediation with the Ruszczyk family over the lawsuit. Though none involved would discuss those negotiations, Bennett characterized the meetings as “protracted, long days.” They agreed on the dollar figure Thursday around 8 p.m., Bennett said.

“It was a struggle to arrive at, but people exhibited some compromise and some courage,” he said.

Friday morning, the City Council entered into a closed-door session to discuss the case, where they voted 12-0 to approve the settlement.

“This tragedy, as unfortunate as it was, happens far too often in our communities,” said City Council Vice President Andrea Jenkins at the news conference afterward. “Public safety and police trust must be our utmost concern going forward.”

Frey said the testimony and evidence produced at trial made clear that Noor did not face a threat before using force. This fact, combined with the unprecedented murder conviction, influenced the high settlement, the mayor said.

City Council Member Jeremiah Ellison said the donation to the Minneapolis Foundation was a priority for the city, and the charity will take direct input from other victims of police violence on how to use that money.

The money comes out of the city’s self-insurance fund, which is used in part to pay liabilities relating to police misconduct, workers’ compensation and other claims. Money for the fund comes from premiums charged to every municipal department.

The previous record settlement for police use of force came in 2007, when the city paid $4.5 million to Duy Ngo, a police officer shot by another officer who mistook him for a fleeing suspect. Minneapolis’ highest previous payout for a police killing was $3 million to the family of David Smith, who died after a struggle with officers at the YMCA in 2010.
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